August 29, 2021

All the released pupils of the Salihu Tanko Islamiyya school, Tegina, in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger have  been reunited with their parents just as parents have admitted to paying ransom to the abductors.

The Head Teacher of the school, Alhaji Alhassan Garba, told newsmen on Sunday in Minna that he supervised the handing over of the children to their parents.

“I personally supervised the hand over of the pupils to their parents on Friday and Saturday.

“All the parents were happy to have their children back and willing to allow them to continue to acquire  their education in the same school,” Garba said.

He said that the management of the school would soon meet with the community to workout the modalities for the reopening of the institution which had been closed for three months now.

He said the Chairman of Rafi Local Government, Alhaji Ismail Dan Modibi, councilors and other stakeholders would soon deliberate on various forms of security measures to be adopted if the school resumed normal academic activities.

The head teacher said that he personally went and picked the pupils at a village called Gwaska in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

He said the abductors of the pupils after collecting ransom insisted that he must personally go there and pick the children.

“I had to take a bike from Birnin Gwari town to a particular destination were I picked the children for onward journey back to Minna, ” he said.

Meanwhile, one of the mothers of the released children, Hajia Rabi Abubakar, said she was happy to have her two kids back.

Abubakar said she paid an undisclosed amount of money to get her children back, but vowed to allow them to continue with their Islamiyya education in the school.

She said that the incident would not affect the educational pursuit of the children.

” Islamic and western education is the only legacy any responsible family will leave behind for their children and I am determined to do that to enable them be responsible citizens.

“We have suffered too much in the hands of the bandits but our Allah will surely punish any person or group of people that had a hand in the incident and for causing untold hardships to us and the innocent kids.

Hajia Habiba Aliyu, whose five children are among the freed pupils, was full of praises to God.

” When we  learnt that the abducted children have regained freedom from their kidnapers were  all happy and full of praises to God.

“We prayed and fasted, seeking God’s intervention for the safe return of our kids,” Aliyu said.

Meanwhile, one of the released pupils, Zuwaira Isa, said they trekked for almost four days in the forest before reaching a final destination.

“The little ones amongst us were lifted on the bandits’ motorcycles throughout the movement.

“We were fed with rice though not enough to satisfy us. We were subjected to severe beatings both in the morning and evening, and they threatened to kill us if our parents did not pay our ransom,” Isa said.

Another one, Hauwa Musa, said: ” they usually beat us and threatened to kill us and dump our bodies in the bush if our parents did not pay the ransom.”

Musa also said the bandits were giving them small food ration and one pure water sachet for two abductees.

She, however, said that the incident would not deter her from continuing with her educational pursuit, adding, ”I am so much eager to go back to school.”

Mallam idris Umar, another parent of some of the released pupils, also stated that the incident would not discourage them from sending their children to Islamic schools in the town.

Umar said they had already planned to secure the school and other schools in the community.

” We have put in place sensitive security measures that will  prevent future occurrences  of the incident as our children resume normal academic activities in the  school .

” We, the parents, have collectively agreed not to be discouraged by the recent activities of the bandits in preventing our children to acquire Islamic and western education.

“We will allow and encourage the children to realise that seeking knowledge is the best thing to happen in this world and the here after,” he said.( NAN